Clan of Demons
by Usagi Hyuga
Summary: What if things had happened differently? The Uchihas are alive. Naruto, with control over the Kyuubi, is one of the most powerful ninja in Konoha. But power doesn't just create a hero, it can destroy one too...
1. Chapter 1

The sun dipped behind the orange cliffs of Konoha, turning the five hokage rock carvings into dark masks against the pink clouds. Below, the lights in the village started to glow, speckled across a few areas at first but gradually they spread right to the edges of the black forest, and as the night deepened the lanterns grew brighter. Naruto sighed.

It would have to be tomorrow, he knew that. There was no way to avoid it. And he didn't really want to leave it any longer. She would only become angrier which, from what Jiraiya had told him, seriously endangered his life. But the assigned mission this time…

Naruto gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.

_How can they ask me to do this? How can they ask anyone to do this?_

A chilling laugh rumbled through his mind. _Scared? _It cackled. _That's not like you, boy. _

"Not now. Get lost you damn fox."

It laughed harder in reply, almost hysterical. _I thought this was what you wanted boy. Isn't it? To have your power…acknowledged? _The demon went quiet, waiting.

Naruto didn't answer. Usually he would shout back at the Kyuubi, remind that fox that he wasn't a weak coward. That he'd trained hard, so hard, to gain the respect of each person in this village and until now he was finally getting there. People would finally believe him when spoke of his dream.

But this was pointless. It already knew all that.

For the first few years, Naruto had constantly fought with the Kyuubi. The demon fox was a fiery evil that had burned away the existence of thousands long before Naruto was even born. Always wanting to take control and blaze through everything, burn it all.

It was a slow process but along the way this furious aura had calmed. The Kyuubi even lent its power to Naruto willingly at times, which proved key to gaining the village's trust. Although this malice wasn't completely extinguished, along the way Naruto had come to control the Kyuubi. Yet sometimes it couldn't hold back its cold enjoyment of Naruto's inner battles with his morals, especially when the issue was at hand was so terrible. The demon's true nature raised its twisted head and in the back of his mind Naruto felt it relish at his discomfort.

"Damn fox," he muttered, clenching his fists. "Can't you just fu-"

Behind him someone coughed softly. "Excuse me…"

He spun round, a smile broadening on his face. "Ah, I take it you got the message. I was starting to think you were going to be late like Kakashi always is!"

"What is it?"

"Hey what's that mood for?" Naruto joked and slapped his arm.

He looked at him. Naruto brushed off his shoulder, stepping away slowly.

"Alright alright, I'll get to it. But first, why don't you take off that mask. You're my best friend, right? So you don't need that just now." Naruto grinned, the corners of his eyes scrunching up while he quickly let go of the previous moment's frustrations. The Kyuubi's voice and aura vanished.

In front of him stood a figure cloaked in black. His hood covered the raven hair beneath him and a white mask hid his face. The ANBU member lifted his hand and carefully removed the mask, revealing two fiercely red sharingan eyes.

"Sasuke…" Naruto started, but had to look away. The Konoha lights seemed to require all of his attention.

"What is it?" he repeated.

"There are a few missions I've been given. A-rank. I need you to take them for me," he lied, continuing to stare out at the village below.

Sasuke was silent. Neither of them moved. The pause seemed to stretch on and on, as if to reach out and hold up the lie by its throat, throwing it between them both. Naruto was sure that he knew. Sweat started to form on his brow.

Finally he heard Sasuke move. "I'll get them done. Tell me what they are."

Naruto breathed out. Both relief and an intense guilt shook through his chest.

Holding this back, he turned around and pulled out two sealed scrolls from beneath his own cloak.

"They have to be sent in person to the Kazekage of the Sand Village. Take a team with you." He handed them over. "Thanks Sasuke, I knew I could count on you."

He put his mask back on, nodded once to Naruto, and then disappeared into the night. For a few moments Naruto didn't move. Then the deep growl of the Kyuubi resonated within his mind.

_And how do you expect to wipe out the Uchiha clan when you're as weak as this?_


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

Although he'd already spent an hour arranging and rearranging his weapons, changing and making up his mind, Naruto set the kunai knives out in front of him once more. The tips were laced in a deadly poison, adapted from a black salamander's secretions, just as were most of the shuriken in his possession. It would supposedly bring instant and painless death to the victim. but the way its colour jumped out from the blades like a permanent blood stain seemed to scream the opposite. And he would have to inflict that on people he knew, people he spoke to each day and trained with. His friends.

But it was for the entire village's protection that they gave him this horrific task.

"We've been monitoring the movements of the Uchiha clan," Tsunade had told Naruto as he stood in front of her desk, "and a select few from ANBU black ops have infiltrated the organisations beneath the head family."

He remembered struggling to control the shock and sudden anger that spread across his face. He spent a lot of his free time around the Uchiha clan. Behind their appearance of stern coldness and perhaps arrogance, they were extremely loyal to one another and were a family. Naruto liked that feeling.

"What, why? They're part of this village, you should been focusing on the threats we have from outside! There are good leaf ninjas out there getting killed, putting their life on the line right now, because they don't have enough back up. And you're just sending ninjas off to do pointless rubbish like this!"

Tsunade ignored his outburst and the closed fists which surely annoyed her. "All of what we gathered is classified information that not even can be told. But I knew you would need to know some reason for your next mission."

Naruto was still watching her with a furious glare, his brow crumpled underneath the metal forehead protector.

"The Uchiha clan is corrupt. They are planning to commence a violent coup d'etat." His replying stare was blank and so, sighing, she rephrased. "The Uchiha's are going to murder thousands. _If _you don't stop them before they get the chance to."

"Stop lying." Naruto refused to believe this, his eyes bored into the table. Tsunade's voice was too hard and blunt; she must believe what she'd told him. To take a glance at her face, where her eyes would be surely clear of any untruthfulness, would only beat his heart deeper down the hole forming in his chest. The Uchiha clan _couldn't _be evil.

"I don't have time to waste with lies, Naruto." She stared at him until finally his eyes lifted to meet hers. "Look at this."

On the table she pushed over a file. Slowly, he walked over and opened it. The entire front page was covered in inky characters which carefully detailed a mission strategy, headed _OPERATION: BLACK DEMON. _Naruto scanned through the text, his eyes widening as the truth he feared was proven by this neat and tidy piece of paper. It showed the hokage was to be killed, all opposing villagers slaughtered, ninja teams taken down. An elaborate signature at the bottom confirmed it. This was an assassination mission, signed and approved by Uchiha Fugaku.

"No…" Naruto whispered.

"As you can see, this is a threat which cannot be ignored and must be dealt with immediately," she carried on, closing the file and placing it in the drawer of her desk. "All attempts at confronting Fugaku, or any other Uchiha for that matter, have ended in denial and hostility. The mission plan mentions a date various times throughout and we can only take this for when they will attack. That date falls on equinox, two days away."

In his room, Naruto hit his fists against his head, trying to dispel the memory of that conversation. He knew why he was doing this. They'd chosen him as having enough power, both his own and the Kyuubi's, and experience in ninja operations to carry out this covert mission.

But all he could think of now was how he would explain to Tsunade why Sasuke Uchiha wasn't killed along with the rest of his clan. And how Sasuke would look at him when he returned from the fake missions he'd sent him on. How he would be responsible for murdering his best friend's clan.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Thank you for reading! **

**All reviews are gratefully recieved, so please don't forget to leave a comment :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

With an unusually tidy and organised pack of weapons, Naruto raced through village. Each road and ally was blanketed in thick dark shadows clinging to the cold stones, hiding him from any eyes that might be fast enough to catch a glimpse.

The Uchiha border was gradually coming into view, its great red and white symbol seeming to glow brightly even in the night. Naruto slowed down and searched the gates for any ninjas. Nobody was there. A slight sense of relief flashed in his chest, but it disappeared just as quickly when the mist of guilt and dread spread through him.

_Just get it over with Naruto… _The familiar growl of the Kyuubi haunted his mind. He could tell it wanted to enjoy this. _You might even enjoy it too, _it laughed hoarsely.

"Damn fox." He muttered and silently ran into Uchiha territory.

Even if he was noticed, Naruto knew that most of the Uchiha's would only try to welcome him back. They trusted him. Most of the time Naruto would be here with Sasuke, discussing everything; the missions they'd been on together, which one of them had grown stronger, the new noodles at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar…

Naruto's nails dug deeply into his palms, blood staining his hands.

"What am I doing?" Gradually he came to a halt. The silence of the night around him was heavy and unnerving. As he stood, his eyes close tightly and lips pressed into a thin line, the nine tailed demon hissed

_What _are _you doing? If you're not here to kill then go. _He was almost stunned at the fox's nearly kind words until it began barking out profanities that severely degraded Naruto in every way.

Before he could throw the insults loudly back, he heard voices emanating from a house near to him. He jumped back, pressing himself against the wall. When he listened, he realised the voices were angry and tense, as though arguing. Then he realised who these voices belonged to.

"Damn it Sasuke, listen to me!" Naruto heard the exasperated tone of Fugaku Uchiha. "You're wasting your time, can't you see?"

"I don't need to explain myself to you all the time," Sasuke replied, quiet but equally as vehement as his father. Naruto could imagine the enraged glare that would appear in his obsidian eyes.

"And I don't ask you to!" There was a thump, followed by the crash of objects falling and cracking on the floor. "I just want you to focus on the right goals."

"My goals belong only to me."

"You're wasting your potential, Sasuke. You could be as great as…"

They were both quiet for a moment.

"Will I never be equal to _him _in your eyes?"

""Don't start that again."

"Why not? It's true isn't it?"

"You know it's not. And you shouldn't talk about him like that."

"Like what! You're the one who will never mention Itachi's name any more."

"Don't raise your voice to me."

"Just because he's not alive anymore, it doesn't mean he never existed!"

"_Watch your tongue boy._"

The silence rose again, hot and thick. Naruto shifted uncomfortably. Sasuke was supposed to be on his way to the sand village. But even so, Naruto really knew he couldn't bring himself to carry out this mission, whether Sasuke was away or not. He was about to move away, he knew he shouldn't have been standing there eavesdropping. Yet before he could go, the sound of his own name held him there.

"It's because you're around that Naruto boy all the time that you've got this attitude."

"Don't bring him into this father."

"This is the true reason for your lack of discipline, your weakness."

"I've become far stronger in his company than I ever could in yours."

"You're blinded by this misplaced loyalty. The Uchiha clan will have immeasurable power in the future because we protect our own family's blood, not the skin of our enemies."

"Enemies?" Sasuke spat out. "Naruto is my closest friend. And I will always protect those close to me."

"Are your sharingan so easily deceived? That demon-"

Sasuke cut off his words. "I don't have time for this, father. I have a mission to complete."

Naruto, stunned from way that Sasuke so strongly defended him to his own father, barely had enough time to disappear into the shadows when his friend darted from the house. The ANBU uniformed ninja, clutching the scrolls of a fake mission, leapt across the roofs soundlessly and faded quickly into the blackened skyline. His stormy mood prevented him from noticing Naruto's figure that hid just a few feet away from his point of exit.

Cold air washed over Naruto face. Determination set in his features. He waited for a few minutes after he could no longer see Sasuke before reaching into his bag. The blade of the poisoned Kunai hiss as it brushed against the other metal there. Gripping one tightly, he turned to the door of the Uchiha household.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: **

**Please enjoy and don't forget to review! **

**This chapter I've decided to dedicate to LeilaTasuki - thank you for your support, and hopefully this chapter is a little more fast paced :D**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 4<strong>

"What are you doing here?" spoke Fugaku calmly, facing away from Naruto as he stared out the open panel doors. He stood, arms crossed behind him, wearing a long black cloak bearing the Uchiha crest between his shoulders. It was the same black cloak he had chosen to wear since his early retirement from the Konoha Military Police Force almost ten years ago. The same cloak since Itachi's death.

"I think you know why." He was quiet for a moment. Naruto waited.

"I can guess," he said. "But indulge me. Tell me why you're holding the poisoned kunai in my house."

Fugaku turned round. His emotionless stare locked onto Naruto. A cold harness glazed his eyes.

"You're planning an attack on Konoha, aren't you?" Despite the anger simmering in his chest, he managed to return the stare.

Fugaku closed his eyes and laughed. "Am I?"

Naruto snapped. He leapt forward, wrapped his fingers around his neck and swung him into the wall. There was a loud thump as his chest hit and a creaking groan from the wooden pane.

"What are you so glad about?" Naruto roared, his eyes no longer a cobalt blue but fiery red. "Say it, look me in the eyes and tell me. What are you planning?" Fugaku clenched his fists but didn't move to push Naruto from him. "What are you planning?"

"I'm sure the hokage has already told you what I'm 'planning' to do."

"Damn you," Naruto growled. "Damn you!" The dark chakra oozing from his skin began to burn and blister Fugaku's throat. He choked and cried out, prompting Naruto to throw him across the room. As he slid across the floor, coming to a stop only when he smacked into the opposite wall, Naruto trembled in fury.

"Damn…you…!"

Naruto slowly withdrew the Kyuubi's chakra, knowing how much unnecessary damage it would cause. He had to stay calm. He had to know for certain.

"What are you planning?"

Fugaku stood up, coughing and rubbing his neck. Beneath his heavy brow glinted a familiar red. "So you are just a demon after all. And don't they all treat you like one? Sending you to do their dirty work."

"WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING?" He threw the kunai from his hand and it lodged itself deep into the wall. With rapid motion he unsheathed the katana from his scabbard and sliced through the flesh on Fugaku's arm, stopping him from drawing his own weapons. Blood started to drip from his fingertips. He gaped at the wound; he hadn't expected to be injured so easily.

Naruto held out his sword, the blade quivering with his anger, and pointed it at Fugaku's chest.

"Tell me," he whispered, "what the hell you are planning before I kill you now."

"So you are here to kill me. No, not just me. That's far too many weapons for one assassination." Realisation filled his expression. "You're here to kill all of us."

"Tell me."

"What will you do then? When Sasuke returns?" He watched Naruto twitch at the name. "I'm sure you've already thought about that."

"Tell me."

"He'll hate you."

"What are your plans."

"He'll kill you."

"WHAT ARE –" The poisoned kunai flew from Fugaku's hand and buried into Naruto's shoulder. He gasped, stumbling back. As he moved the cold metal of the knife shifted, cutting deeper and sending a wave of through his arm.

Fugaku stood and moved to him. He clasped the end of the kunai, the slight vibrations causing Naruto to bear his teeth in pain. He pushed it in further and watched him convulse in blinding agony. The poison really did work slowly.

"Now," Fugaku leaned in, "what were my plans again? Attack Konoha?"

"You…" Naruto spluttered.

_You've still got one hand… _the Kyuubi's voice reminded him.

Fighting against the excruciating flood through his body, Naruto forced his hand to tighten its grip on the katana. Fugaku stepped back. He had no doubt that the poison, surely one of the hokage's concoctions, would kill the boy before he could even lift his arm. He felt guilt for the sadness he knew he would cause his son.

Naruto slowly built up all of his energy, concentrating it to one area. He knew now for certain and he couldn't allow it to happen. He would die to protect Konoha if that's what it took. The chakra of the Kyuubi swelled in his hand and with a rush of power Naruto plunged the sword into Fugaku's chest. Yet before the shock could register in his blood-red sharingan eyes, an explosion of heat and debris threw them to the floor with a burst of terrifying force.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong>

**Thank you for reading! Please review, even if it's just a little review, I would love to hear what you think.**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

Naruto felt the pieces of wood pierce his skin when they exploded out from the walls. As he slammed into the floor his katana slipped from his grip and Fugaku fell away from him, a bloodied mess of burnt limbs. He'd taken the front of the flames that poured into the room. The heat rushed at Naruto, grating over his flesh and making him choke on the veil of smoke enveloping the place. But the fire itself lashed out at too short a range for to swallow him entirely. His eyes started to stream uncontrollably but he forced them open. Everything had suddenly become a mass of black heat and muffled screams.

"HELP! Somebody, please, somebody help!" came a desperate cry from somewhere in smoke. A woman. Trapped. Naruto's mind struggled to focus, misted by pain and poison. Even though the kunai had been knocked out from his shoulder in the explosion it had already drained its deadly liquid into his veins. It wouldn't be long before the numbness spread to his lungs and to his heart.

The woman's voice returned, shaking with the shock and relief. "Oh, thank God. Thank you. Please, my baby, my baby first. Help my baby."

The fire roared out wildly and dragged down part of the roof. Fugaku's body was engulfed by the blackened shards of his fallen house, the cracking blade of the sword deep inside his already still heart. When the roof stopped sliding down, giving a short space of time to escape from under it, Naruto tried to move. He managed to push himself up slightly but the blood began spinning and spinning in his head. A strong feeling of dizziness twisted his stomach; blackness circled the edges of his eyes, threatening to swarm over his vision. Naruto collapsed back heavily, sweat running down his face.

"No, what are you doing?" he heard the woman cry out. "No, no, please. Stop, what are -" The voice was abruptly cut off and Naruto's eyes snapped open. He listened and found he didn't have to strain to hear more. It suddenly overwhelmed him. Screams and moans and pleas for mercy, the cold thump of metal plunging into flesh.

"N…no…" Naruto coughed out. This wasn't right. This shouldn't happen. He hadn't called out his back up team yet, they were meant to wait by the gates until he contacted them. Why were they here now, why were they attacking?

There was the sound of running feet, a steadily growing rumble from all sides. Then came the hissing clash of metal against metal, attack meeting attack; the entire place was in a state of violent frenzy. Of course they would defend themselves. And the Uchiha's were not forgiving. _We protect our family's blood. _Naruto remembered those words and knew that this would only end when death befell one side. For the safety of Konoha he also knew what side he should pray succeed. Fugaku had proven the plans existed and he was ordered by the hokage to eradicate that threat, to kill the clan.

Even though these were his orders, the scream of the innocent people echoed in his thoughts. An image of Sasuke's expression, tortured with the grief and hatred he would soon feel, flashed in front of him. Naruto coughed painfully and tasted the bitter copper flavour of blood in his mouth. Why did it have to be like this?

He forced his body to move, to stand. The house seemed to groan and creak as though it wanted him to stay, to lie there as it consumed him in entirely. With an agonising push Naruto managed to step forward. As he did, the black patches lingering at the edges of his eyes bloomed over his whole view. The sounds around him became muffled, as if he had been pushed under water and was sinking rapidly. His body became completely cold and numb. Naruto didn't feel anything when he crashed back into the floor.

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><p>Sasuke hadn't gone very far when he heard the explosions behind him. There were two, each at opposite ends of Uchiha territory. One of these looked like it had hit an old training site, the place where most of the leaders in the military police force like to meet on a regular basis to moan about their weekly expenditures.<p>

The other was his home.

With an uneasy feeling rising from the pit of his stomach, Sasuke sped towards the huge plume of smoke. He could see already that the roof was collapsing in on itself at the front, exposing the ash covered interior of his father's study. Everything was ruined. He tried to dissolve the dread in his mind, begged any and every God he didn't really believe in to just show him his father. Just let him be alright.

When he reached the place the door should have been he saw the blood everywhere. Lying a few feet away from him, her throat cut, was a friend of his father. She would always smile at him and spend such a long time each morning chattering to him about her newborn son, how much he resembled his father who was away on a long mission. They were defenceless.

A little further away there was a black clothed ninja, trying to crawl away whilst clutching at his side. Sasuke went to him. He placed his foot on the ninja's stab wound and pressed down, hard.

"Before I kill you," he hissed at the squirming man, "you're going to tell me how many are with you and what you're doing here."

There was a slight noise behind him and Sasuke whipped round to bury a kunai in the chest of another ninja. The attacker froze for a moment, wide eyes staring, before dropping to their knees and falling dead to the ground. Sasuke turned back again.

"Now, what were you going to say?"

The man wriggled in pain, blood dripping down his chin. He looked up at Sasuke.

"Must…" he spluttered.

"Speak louder." Sasuke stamped on his chest, causing him to cough out a spray of blood. He clenched his fists.

"Must… protect Konoha. Protect Konoha."

The ninja bared his teeth and prepared to release an explosive tag. Sasuke leapt away, using his arms to shield from the burning dirt and debris. As it settled around him, he heard the sound of shouting voices getting nearer. He recognised those voices. The rest of the village was defending itself, ready and fighting back within minutes. The assailants wouldn't have a hope of survival after attacking the Uchiha clan. Sasuke stood and moved back to his crumbling home.

No, he thought. The one who did this wouldn't have hope at all.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong>

**Okay, so it's a little longer than the others but I'm going to try and make the next ones even longer. So it may take a little while to upload those, hopefully not too long though :)**

**Thank you for reading :D Please review and let me know what you think, what you liked/didn't like so much. :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

It was an ash cloaked hell that Sasuke stepped into. What was left of the roof he had slept under his whole life was now plunging into the wreckage of the east facing walls. Tongues of fire lashed out from the chaos as the flames gorged on the feast. Spears of blackened wood seemed to extend towards him as he walked through, scratching at his clothes and trying to rake their splintering edges down his arms. He peered through the soot and dirt lingering in the air.

"Father!" Sasuke called out. "Father where are you?"

The dry smoke caught in his throat and brought with it a sudden torrent of coughing. His eyes streamed, the tears weaving through the layer of dirt that stuck on his cheeks. Sasuke forced his chest to stop quivering, holding his hand across his mouth as he proceeded. But before he could get very far his eyes caught on a familiar shade of orange on the floor. His heart dropped.

"Naruto? Naruto!" Sasuke hurried toward his friend, turning him over to see his face. It was smeared with dirt and his whole right side was covered in puckering red blisters. Although his eyes were half open they were unmoving, sightless. Sasuke pressed a finger to his throat, feeling the slow twitch of a pulse there and sighed quietly with relief. Yet the relief was short lived as he looked down and saw the tear across Naruto's shirt. Blood oozed from an almost fully healed wound; fox chakra was sealing it shut. Tiny blue flicks lined the rim of the thin line, shifting and twisting outwards like a dark web. The tell tale sign of poison at work, a deadly one. Sasuke ripped open the tear in his shirt and confirmed what he feared; the blue threads curved viciously into forked tips that threatened to close in on his heart.

With one hand he dipped into the pouch at Naruto's side, searching for a vile that might carry the antidote. Sasuke was surprised to find so many kunai knives and shuriken there, so neatly packed as well, but dismissed it in his search. He was about to curse his dying friend for foolishly leaving out perhaps the most important item when his fingers brushed against a small cylinder.

"Thank God…" Sasuke tugged out the vile. Printed in clear characters on the side was the word 'cure'. Within the clear glass sat a viscous liquid of an ominous green shade. It smelt just as terrible as it appeared for the container leaked out a mysterious and pungent stench when he twisted the lid.

With the poison edging so close to Naruto's heart, Sasuke knew he had little time to waste. With his other hand he pulled out one of his own kunai, placing its tip over the fading cut.

"I'm sorry."

In a sharp jerk he punctured Naruto's shoulder. The only reaction from him was a sharp exhale.

_Thank God_, Sasuke thought. _At least I don't have to deal with him yelling in my ear whilst I do this._

Blood pooled over around the blade, his pulse was too weak and limp to push much out. Sasuke carefully reopened the wound wider. The flesh around it was discoloured from the poison. He brought the vile closer and tipped half of it onto the affected area, watching the thick drops get absorbed. As soon as it entered his blood stream Sasuke could see that it was slowly taking affect. The molecules were drawing in the poison, pulling them out of the cells, and shifting colours. At first he caught a glimpse the poison's original shade; a red much brighter, much fiercer than the blood it occupied. But as it was deactivated by the antidote, the colours faded and the liquid that was formed appeared pale white and thin.

Sasuke continued to stare at it, hoping that he hadn't administered the antidote too late. It seemed that the poison had been made to linger in the body, prolong the agony, rather than target the vital organs as soon as it entered the system. His face contorted in disgust as he thought about the sick minds that made such a substance.

Steadily the poison was drawn out, leaving only a faint bruise on his chest. The remaining liquid seeped from the wound, mixed with Naruto's dark but now clean blood. It was removed successfully.

Sasuke slid the kunai out and watched as the skin began joining together, healing smoothly with the Kyuubi's chakra. Now that nothing was infecting the surrounding tissue the injuries smoothened out much quicker. He noticed how the burns, raw and bleeding only an instant ago, were slowly diminishing into just small blotches that would soon vanish entirely. Sasuke leaned over Naruto, checking his soft breathing. He reached beneath him and lifted his unconscious body from the soot carpeted floor.

A loud grinding noise sounded from the collapsing roof, giving them barely a moment to get out. Sasuke heaved his friend over his shoulder and darted towards the gaping side of his house. The night air wrapped a cool blanket around him and cleansed his lungs as he gasped it in. As soon as his feet touched the ground he swerved back, the gravel hissing when they reached a stop.

Everything was falling, cracking and tearing into burning shreds. There was a great groan and the last walls that held up his home trembled. Sasuke's eyes widened, shaking. Slivers of thoughts flashed across his mind:

_I could have stopped this. _

_If I'd stayed behind I could have prevented all of this._

_If I hadn't said those things to Father…_

"Father…" he whispered. Time paused. The house was still for a bare second, the flames disappeared. Silence.

"FATHER!"

It rushed back into chaos; the house crashed to the rumble in a cloud of swirling smoke and a roar of awakened flames smothered his cries. The dirt puffed high into the sky, glowing embers spinning brightly amongst the mist. They were showered in the ash and Sasuke choked violently as he still tried to call out, still tried to get any response from his father. He knew that he had to be close by. His father just couldn't have been inside the house as it fell. He just couldn't. But as much as he screamed out there was no reply. Sasuke's heart pounded against his ribs painfully and a tremor shook his body.

"No, no no," he repeated from between clenched teeth, his jaw stiff with tension. "No, please no."

He sank to his knees, letting Naruto slide to the ground. As the air cleared his eyes restlessly searched the spread of debris before him. His legs shook but he forced himself to stand, to step forward. Then, just as he neared the fires, he saw what he'd been dreading. From beneath the ash and piles of wood he could see the red and white fan of the Uchiha crest, now smeared with dirt and blood. But it was still the same crest on the same long black cloak.

"Father, no…"

Sasuke ignore the sear of the fire and desperately lifted away the huge pieces that covered his father, throwing them away. "Father! Father!"

Sweat mixed with the tears that kept escaping his eyes. Finally he was able to turn his father over, calling out to him constantly. He shook his lifeless body.

"No..." he moaned. Sasuke sobbed loudly, blinded by the overflowing tears and throbbing ache throughout his whole being. Even though he could eventually stop the tears, the pain refused to leave his chest and continued to swell unbearably. "I'm sorry, Father. I'm so sorry."

Sasuke moved to stand back up when he looked down at his father and froze. Jutting out from his motionless chest was part of the silver blade which had killed him. It was cracked and its hilt no longer attached but Sasuke recognised the metal immediately. He and Naruto had spent weeks shaping and perfecting that katana. Wishing that he was wrong Sasuke turned and look at his friend, stirring into consciousness. He stared at the place where the sword should have been. An empty sheath, the excess of weapons, finding him half dead in his house… Sasuke's head started spinning wildly.

"S-Sasuke?"

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Okay! So a new chapter - please review! **

**Thank you for reading :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

_-Seven years ago-_

Pollen, as soft and plump as dandelion heads, floated with idle ease in the early evening air. A gentle glow of sun brushed the pollen in shifting shades of amber and honey yellow. Each tiny speck waltzed lightly, weaving an untraceable path towards the sky as though they might become stars if only they reached far enough. Sasuke rolled over, burying his face into open palms.

"Hey, Sasuke."

He didn't answer. For a moment he wondered whether it would disappear if he just stayed still, quiet. Perhaps if he waited…

"Yo SASUKE!"

"Damn it Naruto, what the hell are you doing?" Sasuke mumbled. "Can't you see I'm sleeping? Idiot." He smirked, not having to lift his head to know there would be a clenched fist waving in his direction.

"Who're you calling idiot? You're not sleeping at all, liar! Get up off the floor and say that to my face, you damn lazy Uchiha!"

Sasuke rolled onto his back once more, the corners of his mouth tilting slightly upwards. He stretched his arms and tucked them behind his head. "As if you could take me on."

"Yeah? Want to try? I won't go easy on you this time Sasuke!" Despite his indignant tone, Naruto grinned widely and dropped to the ground next to his friend. His arms and legs flopped down heavily as he spread out, sending a puff of gold rising up around him, spiralling slowly away. Breathing in deeply, savouring the warm touch of light on his skin, he felt peaceful and calm. It was as though on that hillside, far from the bustle and rush of Konoha's centre with its constant pressure, stress and worry of training or missions, he could just relax.

There was a hollow thud as Sasuke whacked Naruto's chest.

"Oof! What the-?" he managed to cough out when Sasuke cut him off.

"Stop snoring loser. You sound like a pig." He turned over calmly, leaving a pair of eyes staring furiously at the back of his head.

"WHAT?" Naruto yelled. "What kind of reason is that? I don't snore and I was wide awake you damn idiot!" He flung his fist down where Sasuke's side should have been but it met with the hard soil. "OW! You, dammit! Get back here! Hey! SASUKE!"

Naruto charged after him, cursing noisily all the way and eventually catching up. When he reached him he grabbed his shoulder roughly, whirling him round. Seeing the flicker of a smile in Sasuke's face that threatened to develop into a full blown chuckle, Naruto collapsed in the grass unable to breathe from a fit of laughter. "You... phwaaa! Haha! Sa..haha! Sasuke!"

Despite his efforts he couldn't help but find the laughter contagious. Sasuke covered his mouth, trying to stop. This made Naruto laugh even harder. Tears ran freely down his cheeks and he gripped his aching stomach.

Sasuke recovered quickly, the look of indifference masking his amusement and his narrowed eyes glancing away in embarrassment. He cleared his throat.

"Oi," he nudged Naruto with a toe, "get up."

"Wait…wait a second. I need to…catch my breath…!" Sasuke began walking, though much slower. "Hey! Hey I said… wait dammit!"

They found the well worn path out of the field that would return them to the village centre. The white dust lifted around their feet, joining the yellow skies. For a while they followed the path, allowed it to take them further away from the fields while their minds were enchanted by the serenity. Somewhere along the path Sasuke slowly stopped. Naruto turned back.

"Sasuke?"

"Why did you come here?" He spoke emotionlessly, looking out towards Konoha. The flat and empty tone wiped cleanly away all the humour. Naruto stood.

"Well I was just taking a walk through-"

"Don't." Sharply he turned and faced Naruto with hard, coal black eyes. "Don't lie to me."

He sighed, muttering guiltily, "I wish you would let me finish…" This time his gaze met Sasuke's with a sudden sense of solemnity. "It worried me. When you left, that is. I thought you would have been happy about this. I mean, you've been working so hard towards getting this placement. Are you alright?"

There was a long pause in which Naruto shifted uncomfortably, waiting for a reply. But the dark eyes just watched the pollen filled skies, looking beyond them at something only he could see.

"This was his."

Itachi. How long had it been since he passed away? It seemed as though only yesterday he was practicing his new jutsu with Sasuke behind the clan's village. It still felt like he might appear at any time to poke his little brother's forehead for frowning too long. His overwhelming absence never eased its grip on that little brother's thoughts. And it was especially strong now that Sasuke had been appointed captain of the ANBU squad, a position that had belonged to Itachi.

"He would be proud of you right now," Naruto told him.

"Itachi is dead." His hand curled into a fist yet his voice was still devoid of emotion.

"He would be proud of you," he repeated more forcefully. Then he reached out to Sasuke, placing his palm on his shoulder. His voice became much softer when he spoke, "And I'm proud to be your friend."

Sasuke's eyes snapped back to Naruto's face, stunned. The smile he received was so warming, so childlike and innocent that it immediately coaxed out his own small smile. It appeared and vanished very quickly, but Naruto saw it and grinned wider.

Sasuke started walking again, passing ahead of Naruto. When he was a few feet away he stopped and twisted his head back. "Loser."

"Hey Sasuke! Your proud to be my friend too, aren't you? Neh? Sasuke!"

"What? Of an idiot like you?"

"You're the damn idiot! HEY! SASUKE!"

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><p><strong>FLASHBACK! Okay, so you may be a little annoyed that this chapter doesn't follow straight on from the last but I felt that it would help to build up their bond a lot more if the background stuff is there. Also, as you may have noticed, this chapter is short. I know I said I would be trying to write longer chapters - and I am trying! - but at the moment time is not something I have very much of. Hence the tiny chapter. For a couple of weeks my updates will probably be less frequent, that is until this exam season is over, and then hopefully I'll be able to writeupdate a lot more. **

**Thanks for reading - please please please review! I would really like to hear what you think of this chapter ^_^**


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